Alabama Basketball: Tide drops fourth straight as NCAA hopes dim
By Ronald Evans
Alabama basketball lost to Florida 73-52 Tuesday night in Tuscaloosa. The fourth straight loss almost guarantees the Tide is now an NCAA ‘Bubble’ team.
How bad was it for Alabama basketball in Tuscaloosa on Tuesday night? First, the game was not as close as the final 21 point deficit. The Gators cruised through the second half, either drilling jumpers or easily penetrating the Tide’s porous defense. Only Braxton Key delivered anything that resembled winning basketball for the Tide. He finished with 11 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor and added eight rebounds and an assist.
Collin Sexton led the Tide in scoring with 14 points on 5-for-16 shooting. Sexton added five rebounds and three assists, along with three turnovers. How poorly did the other ‘regulars’ perform on offense? They combined to shoot 8-for-31. Particularly ineffective was Donta Hall with three points and only two field goal attempts. Avery Jr. shot 1-for-8. Herbert Jones was 0-for-4; John Petty was 1-for-4.
In the first half, Alabama dominated the boards 26-16, including 12 offensive rebounds. Those 12 offensive boards yielded two points. The Tide began the game with a 6-0 lead in the first 1:24 of the game. With 3:15 left in the first half, the Tide trailed by 15 points and the game was basically over.
Did the young Tide quit? It was more like they never started. As poorly as Alabama basketball played on offense, it was equally as poor defensively. The Gators only made six turnovers (compared to the Tide’s 15), largely because breaking down the Tide defense was so easy.
What has happened to the Tide?
Rather than answer what comes next for Alabama basketball, the better question is what has happened. When Alabama basketball should be shedding its inexperience and peaking, it is instead a bad basketball team. Bad on both ends of the floor.
Is there a player chemistry issue that has simmered for awhile and suddenly led to team decay? Has Avery Johnson lost the ability to motivate his team? There are no answers. There will be plenty of recriminations. Alabama basketball fans will not respond well to having their NCAA dreams destroyed for another season.
Is there any path left to the NCAA Tournament? Does the Tide still deserve consideration for the NCAA field? There are longshot paths left. Deserving is a subject for debate. Win in College Station on Saturday, followed by two SEC Tournament wins and an 11 or 12 seed is still possible. Lose to TAMU, and at least three SEC Tournament wins will be needed.
Realistically, the Tide team that played in Tuscaloosa Tuesday night will struggle to beat any team in the SEC. Beating any of the top eight SEC teams in St. Louis seems almost impossible.
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As a longtime Alabama basketball fan, we would like to close on a positive note. This is it. Benched in favor of Lawson Schaffer, long before the end Tuesday night, rather than sulking, Collin Sexton rooted for his teammates still on the court.